Gap-Year Testimonials for Parents

...from Parents

"Normally, I would be very concerned to wire transfer $4200 to a stranger in a foreign country....and pay almost $2000 for airfare for our daughter to go on an adventure far, far away...! But, with your supervision and guidance, we feel great about what is about to occur with Robin being in New Zealand for 3 months working in what seems to be a wonderful hostel for what will undoubtedly be an amazing experience for her!"

"Steven has come a very long way in a very short period of time. Things he would have never considered 5 months ago may be fair game now. He traveled the North Island on his own last week. When Beth and I talked with him on Saturday he specifically mentioned being pushed out of his comfort zone. He said that you and he had discussed being pushed out of his comfort zone when you met. He admitted to us that, as he was listening to you, all along he was thinking he wanted to stay in his comfort zone.

"I'm sure Beth and I will find Steven has changed over the last 5 months. We have discussed his opportunity many times and both feel it was the best thing we could have ever done to help prepare him for his next steps. He had some tough times as well as good times, but learned from both. He learned a lot about people and much more about himself.

"We also often think how close we were to not discovering such a wonderful opportunity for him. If Beth had not been in the car on the way to the grocery store at the right time, listening to NPR with you being interviewed, she/we would have never been aware that any such program was available. As you know, that's how life works."

Owen's tall ship experience

"Because of you, my son experienced a highly successful gap year doing programs he would never have found on his own. You correctly steered him toward a program that would help him regain his confidence in his academic skills, and then you steered him toward a program that forced him out of his comfort zone and helped him grow and develop real-life survival skills. He is eager to return to school now and has confidence and maturity that will ensure success in his freshman year.

"My son was burned out after a demanding IB curriculum in high school and had he moved directly into college he would have compromised a successful future...(On his program) he took a course in Arabic for the first time and because of the positive experience he has decided to select it as a major or minor in college."

"The programs Jeff participated in were excellent. He had an amazing year. It was everything we hoped for. I will encourage my younger son to take a gap year, and tell everyone I know that I think it's a good idea for all kids between high school and college. We have and will continue to highly recommend your company to everyone we speak to about it. Thank you for a superb experience!"

"We think you do a great job and it's comforting for the student and parents to know that you're out there and just an email away! Thanks again for your terrific work. Jacob has had a phenomenal year of growth, maturity, exposure, adventure and we know he'll hit the ground running when he gets to Harvard in September."

"We have no negative comments whatsoever. With Interim, we felt like we were sending our son to be with relatives - trusted relatives - in another country. We have recommended Interim to other families who want to have similar experiences."

"My husband and I are very happy with Interim. Our interaction (and our daughter's) with Interim and its staff was fantastic. Interim took a very personal interest in our daughter's well-being and showed a lot of concern: frequent emails and very quick responses to our questions and was always there to help. We're just as glad we found Interim and would recommend it to any family."

"I thought the whole experience was very personable and tailor-made for my son. He had an unbelievable experience and his maturity level in college has been way beyond my expectations. I am emailing you a paper Harris wrote for freshman English this fall. He made an A on it and other students in the class asked if they could use one of his life experiences to write about. I talk about this program to anyone that will listen to me."

...and from the Academic World

"...as someone once reminded me, and as I now remind each incoming class at Princeton, 'the person each of you will spend most of the rest of your life with is yourself, and therefore you owe it to yourself to use your college years to become as interesting a companion as possible.' But I am also convinced that one's college education is greatly enhanced by the more maturity, experience, and perspective a student can bring to it. Alas, it strikes me that these three traits are the very ones that are most difficult for most young people to come by given the lock-step nature that currently characterizes such a large part of the school-to-college process...Indeed, of all the enthusiastic letters I send to students in one year, none are more enthusiastic than those I send in response to students requesting to defer their entrance to college."